What is "star wars"

name of a popular science fiction film released in 1977; also the informal name for a space-based missile defense system proposed in 1983 by U.S. president Ronald Reagan.

Star Wars is an American epic space opera media franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. It depicts the adventures of various characters "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away".

The franchise began in 1977 with the release of the film Star Wars, (subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope in 1981) by 20th Century Fox, which became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. It was followed by the similarly successful sequels The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983); these three films constitute the original Star Wars trilogy. A prequel trilogy was later released between 1999 and 2005, which received a more mixed reaction from critics and fans in comparison to the original trilogy. A sequel trilogy is also currently being produced with the first installment as The Force Awakens (2015). All seven films were nominated for or won Academy Awards, as well as being commercial successes, with a combined box office revenue of $6.46 billion, making Star Wars the fourth highest-grossing film series.

The series has spawned an extensive media franchise—the Star Wars expanded universe, rebranded in April 2014 as Star Wars Legends—including books, television series, computer and video games, and comic books, resulting in significant development of the series's fictional universe. The Clone Wars film, television series of the same name, the Rebels television series, and the anthology films lie outside of the Legends banner and comprise part of the Star Wars official canon alongside the film trilogies. Star Wars holds a Guinness World Records title for the "Most successful film merchandising franchise." In 2012, the total value of the Star Wars franchise was estimated at USD $30.7 billion, including box-office receipts as well as profits from their video games and DVD sales.

In 2012, The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm for $4.06 billion and announced three new Star Wars films; the first film of that trilogy, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, was released in 2015. 20th Century Fox retains the physical distribution rights to the first two Star Wars trilogies, owning permanent rights for the original 1977 film and holding the rights to Episodes I–III, V and VI until May 2020. Walt Disney Studios owns digital distribution rights to all the Star Wars films, excluding A New Hope.

An expanded radio dramatization of the original Star Wars trilogy was produced in 1981, 1983, and 1996. The first two radio series, based on Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, were produced and broadcast by National Public Radio (NPR) as part of NPR Playhouse. A dramatization of Return of the Jedi was produced by most of the same team and also broadcast on NPR.

The radio serials were made with the full cooperation of George Lucas, who, in exchange for a dollar each, sold the rights to KUSC-FM, the public radio affiliate at his alma mater, the University of Southern California (USC). Lucas also permitted the use of original sound effects and music from the films.

Star Wars is an epic science fantasy saga created by George Lucas.

Media within the franchise that have had the specific name Star Wars include:

Star Wars is an arcade game produced by Atari Inc. and released in 1983. The game is a first person space combat game, simulating the attack on the Death Star from the 1977 film Star Wars. The game is composed of 3D color vector graphics. This game was developed during the Golden Age of Arcade Games and is considered the #4 most popular game of all time according to the readers of Killer List of Videogames.

Four Star Wars films have been adapted to manga. There are currently no manga adaptations of Attack of the Clones or Revenge of the Sith.

Star Wars is a 1992 pinball machine released by Data East. It is based on the Star Wars original trilogy of films.

Comic books based on Star Wars have been published by Marvel Comics, Dark Horse Comics and Tokyopop.

is a Family Computer video game released in 1987 by Namco. Despite being based on the first Star Wars film, some levels are based on the later two Star Wars films. It is the only game in the Star Wars franchise that was released exclusively in Japan. The game is a common side-scrolling platformer where the player controls Luke Skywalker (appearing with black hair due to color limitations), as he travels to join the Rebellion against the Empire.

Star Wars Comic was a British comic published monthly by Titan Magazines. It previously featured comic strips reprinted from Star Wars graphic novels published in the United States, but later contained all-original content.

Star Wars is the ninth studio album by American alternative rock group Wilco. It was self-released for free on July 16, 2015 through wilcoworld.net. It is the second Wilco album that was released on their own label dBpm. A CD version of the album was released on August 21 and a vinyl version was released on October 13.

Star Wars, later retitled Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. The first installment in the original Star Wars trilogy, it stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, and Alec Guinness. David Prowse, James Earl Jones, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker and Peter Mayhew co-star in supporting roles.

The plot focuses on the Rebel Alliance, led by Princess Leia (Fisher), and its attempt to destroy the Galactic Empire's space station, the Death Star. This conflict disrupts the isolated life of farmhand Luke Skywalker (Hamill) who inadvertently acquires a pair of droids that possess stolen architectural plans for the Death Star. When the Empire begins a destructive search for the missing droids, Skywalker accompanies Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi (Guinness) on a mission to return the plans to the Rebel Alliance and rescue Leia from her imprisonment by the Empire.

Star Wars was released theatrically in the United States on May 25, 1977. It earned $461 million in the U.S. and $314 million overseas, totaling $775 million. It surpassed Jaws (1975) to become the highest-grossing film of all time, until the release of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). When adjusted for inflation, Star Wars is the second-highest-grossing film in North America, and the third-highest-grossing film in the world. The film received ten Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture), winning seven. It was selected to become part of the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in its first year of opening as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"; at the time, it was the newest film to be selected, and it was the only film from the 1970s to be chosen. The film's soundtrack was added to the U.S. National Recording Registry 15 years later. Today, it is often regarded as one of the best films of all time, as well as one of the most important films in the history of motion pictures. It also launched an industry of media tie-in products, including TV series spinoffs, novels, comic books, and video games, as well as various other merchandise, such as toys, games, clothing, and other paraphernalia.

The film's massive success led to the production of two sequels: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983), both of which became critically and commercially successful. Since 1977, Star Wars was subsequently reissued multiple times at Lucas' behest, incorporating many changes including modified computer-generated effects, altered dialogue, re-edited shots, remixed soundtracks, and added scenes. A prequel trilogy was later released between 1999 and 2005, followed by a sequel trilogy which began in 2015.

Star Wars is an action game based on the 1977 film of the same name. It was released by Victor Interactive Software for the Family Computer in Japan on November 15, 1991 and by JVC for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America in November 1991 and in Europe on March 26, 1992. An official mail order "Hint Book" was available for the game upon its release.

Two versions for handheld game consoles were released. The Game Boy port was developed by NMS Software and published by Capcom and released shortly less than a year later in 1992. The Game Gear port was developed by Tiertex Design Studios and published by U.S. Gold and released in 1993. A Master System version was also released.

The game was followed by a sequel, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. A counterpart of the game for the Super NES, Super Star Wars was released as well.

John Williams' score for Star Wars was recorded over eight sessions at Anvil Studios in Denham, England on March 5, 8–12, 15 and 16, 1977. The score was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra with Williams himself conducting. The score was orchestrated by Williams's frequent associate Herbert W. Spencer, who also orchestrated The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The score was recorded by engineer Eric Tomlinson and edited by Kenneth Wannberg, and the scoring sessions were produced by Star Wars director George Lucas and supervised by Lionel Newman, head of 20th Century Fox's music department.

The film premiered on May 25, 1977 and by late summer a disco version of the film's theme by Meco became America's number one song. In 2005, the American Film Institute named the original Star Wars soundtrack as the most memorable score of all time for a U.S. film. In 2004, it was preserved by the Library of Congress into the National Recording Registry, calling it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." In 2016, the album was re-released by Sony Classical Records on vinyl, CD, and digital formats alongside Williams' other Star Wars soundtracks.